The adventure of Rainon Cooper
by Ultimatekirby90
Summary: This is my own little spin on the manga/anime One Piece, about a kid named Rainon Cooper who goes out on his own journey recruiting his very own crew. Enjoy! Disclaimer: While most characters and locations are my own ideas the concept of this story has derived from the series One Piece by Eiichiro Oda, of which I own no rights. All rights to that series go to him and his producers
1. Chapter 1

**5th July XX85**

I had almost just turned eight, my family and I were still living near the same village, that we had been shown by the fishermen.

But now the town was old, withered and mostly abandoned. Every day a marine would come knock on our door and he'd tell our mother to follow him. I never found out what he did but I could tell by my mom coming home with marks and cuts that it wasn't anything nice.

We didn't have much to eat so everyday when the marines had left the village, me and my brother went out and scavenged for food. We had to go further and further every day, and we had to carry butter knives in case a hungry animal attacked us. It wasn't much but we could handle it. We always found some fresh fruits and berries, though it wasn't the easiest task. We had a book with us so we knew if they were poisonous or not.

When we came home and had to ration the food, mother got most of the food as she deserved it for keeping us safe. She once talked in her sleep and I overheard her saying ''Please I beg of you. I'll do anything, please. Just don't harm my children''

I couldn't stop myself from crying. Our mother had always protected us from all sorts of dangers. One day however she became heavily ill and the marines decided that she wasn't good enough payment for the day so they took my brother. My mother screamed and fought as much as she could but her disease stopped her from doing anything the marines couldn't fend off.

I saw everything from within a barrel where my brother had put me. He had told me to stay quiet and wait until they were gone. I never saw my brother again after that and the marines never returned. I, only being thirteen years old, couldn't fend for myself properly so I had to stay with my mother most of the time except when I went to look for food. I only did it when the sun was high and the animals sleeping in their caves.

My mother did not get healthier and one day when I returned home she was breathing slowly and was sweating all over. I couldn't stand seeing her like that so I softly talked to her. ''Mother… Tell me. What can I do to help you.''

''The only thing you can do for me is leave. Run away. I don't want to lose one more of you. I want you to live. Go to the big city and ask for chef Ransy. He is an old friend of mine and he'll take care of you.'' Both of us were now heavily crying.

I talked with a garbled voice ''But I don't want to be alone. I want to stay with you. I never want to leave you.'' As I pleaded, my mother slowly closed her eyes. Her breathing stopped and so did mine. I was in shock. My mother had just died right in front of my eyes.

I screamed at the top of my lungs until my voice was nothing more than a whisper. ''I will live on, mom. I will find big bro.'' I then ran. Ran for miles on end. I never looked back, I only kept going forwards. When I finally reached the city I was surprised at the size. It was so much bigger than the village and there were so many lights everywhere.

I walked around town being ignored and pushed out of the way by many people. None of them seemed to care for me. I sat down on the sidewalk and cried. Got everything out. Then out of the blue a man walks up to me. ''Hey kid are you alright? What's wrong?'' He handed me his handkerchief and I cleaned my eyes and blew my nose. He sat down next to me as I told him my story.

''Well then I'm not the only one with a reason to hate the marines. You said you were looking for Ransy right? Well follow me and I'll show ya the way.'' He then took my hand in a light grip. I don't remember the last time I had smiled but I did then. This man, a complete stranger, had helped me.

When we arrived in the alleyway he knocked on the door and a rough voice called ''We're closed right now. Come back tomorrow.'' The man holding my hand called out ''It's me. Your favourite customer. I have a fan for you''

Heavy walking could be heard approaching from the inside. ''If this is another one of your pranks I swear I'll…'' The last thing I couldn't make out but now that I think about it, it was probably some kind of threat.

While waiting for the man to open the many locks I took a look at the man next to me. He was wearing a long coat and had a mechanical eye under a see through eye patch which still doesn't make any sense to me. ''What is it… Huh? Who're you kiddo?''

I looked up at him and politely said ''My name is Rainon Cooper, sir, I was sent here by my mother. She told me that you could protect me from the evil marines.'' The chef's harsh expression changed to that of one of the jolliest men on the planet. He laughed a heavy laugh and said ''Come in kid, come in. If you're hungry, I can make any food you wish. If you're tired then I can find a bed and sheet for you. If you want to play a game, then I have tons of board games for you or books if you prefer''

The jolly man had quite a round appearance. He had a full beard of gray hair and earrings in his ears with small dolphins engraved on them. Ever since then I've stayed by his side. I don't think I've ever smiled as much as I did then.


	2. Chapter 2

**5th July XX85**

I had almost just turned thirteen, my family and I were still living near the same village, that we had been shown by the fishermen.

But now the town was old, withered and mostly abandoned. Every day a marine would come knock on our door and he'd tell our mother to follow him. I never found out what he did but I could tell by my mom coming home with marks and cuts that it wasn't anything nice.

We didn't have much to eat so everyday when the marines had left the village, me and my brother went out and scavenged for food. We had to go further and further every day, and we had to carry butter knives in case a hungry animal attacked us. It wasn't much but we could handle it. We always found some fresh fruits and berries, though it wasn't the easiest task. We had a book with us so we knew if they were poisonous or not.

When we came home and had to ration the food, mother got most of the food as she deserved it for keeping us safe. She once talked in her sleep and I overheard her saying ''Please I beg of you. I'll do anything, please. Just don't harm my children''

I couldn't stop myself from crying. Our mother had always protected us from all sorts of dangers. One day however she became heavily ill and the marines decided that she wasn't good enough payment for the day so they took my brother. My mother screamed and fought as much as she could but her disease stopped her from doing anything the marines couldn't fend off.

I saw everything from within a barrel where my brother had put me. He had told me to stay quiet and wait until they were gone. I never saw my brother again after that and the marines never returned. I, only being thirteen years old, couldn't fend for myself properly so I had to stay with my mother most of the time except when I went to look for food. I only did it when the sun was high and the animals sleeping in their caves.

My mother did not get healthier and one day when I returned home she was breathing slowly and was sweating all over. I couldn't stand seeing her like that so I softly talked to her. ''Mother… Tell me. What can I do to help you.''

''The only thing you can do for me is leave. Run away. I don't want to lose one more of you. I want you to live. Go to the big city and ask for chef Ransy. He is an old friend of mine and he'll take care of you.'' Both of us were now heavily crying.

I talked with a garbled voice ''But I don't want to be alone. I want to stay with you. I never want to leave you.'' As I pleaded, my mother slowly closed her eyes. Her breathing stopped and so did mine. I was in shock. My mother had just died right in front of my eyes.

I screamed at the top of my lungs until my voice was nothing more than a whisper. ''I will live on, mom. I will find big bro.'' I then ran. Ran for miles on end. I never looked back, I only kept going forwards. When I finally reached the city I was surprised at the size. It was so much bigger than the village and there were so many lights everywhere.

I walked around town being ignored and pushed out of the way by many people. None of them seemed to care for me. I sat down on the sidewalk and cried. Got everything out. Then out of the blue a man walks up to me. ''Hey kid are you alright? What's wrong?'' He handed me his handkerchief and I cleaned my eyes and blew my nose. He sat down next to me as I told him my story.

''Well then I'm not the only one with a reason to hate the marines. You said you were looking for Ransy right? Well follow me and I'll show ya the way.'' He then took my hand in a light grip. I don't remember the last time I had smiled but I did then. This man, a complete stranger, had helped me.

When we arrived in the alleyway he knocked on the door and a rough voice called ''We're closed right now. Come back tomorrow.'' The man holding my hand called out ''It's me. Your favourite customer. I have a fan for you''

Heavy walking could be heard approaching from the inside. ''If this is another one of your pranks I swear I'll…'' The last thing I couldn't make out but now that I think about it, it was probably some kind of threat.

While waiting for the man to open the many locks I took a look at the man next to me. He was wearing a long coat and had a mechanical eye under a see through eye patch which still doesn't make any sense to me. ''What is it… Huh? Who're you kiddo?''

I looked up at him and politely said ''My name is Rainon Cooper, sir, I was sent here by my mother. She told me that you could protect me from the evil marines.'' The chef's harsh expression changed to that of one of the jolliest men on the planet. He laughed a heavy laugh and said ''Come in kid, come in. If you're hungry, I can make any food you wish. If you're tired then I can find a bed and sheet for you. If you want to play a game, then I have tons of board games for you or books if you prefer''

The jolly man had quite a round appearance. He had a full beard of gray hair and earrings in his ears with small dolphins engraved on them. Ever since then I've stayed by his side. I don't think I've ever smiled as much as I did then.


	3. Chapter 3

**4th Dec XX90**

It was back in South Blue, I was working as a waiter in a back alley restaurant. I wasn't any special even if other people said that I had potential. I was always kind of the lonesome guy. But whenever I was in trouble my friend-in-arms Jack was always there to help. But one time it went way too far.

I had borrowed money to make myself a special trinket. I was making a multi weapon for some big-shots so they would leave the people around me alone. But I had no money to pay them back, then one day when I was leaving work they were just there. I only saw one of them, before everything turned dark.

When I came to I was gagged and bound. Looking around I could see we were underneath a bridge. They were binding a big rock to the other end of the rope I was bound to. Then I heard steps coming from behind the two guys. I thought it was more of them, but to my surprise, it was none other than Jack.

The people that had gagged me pulled out their guns and just began shooting. Jack had no time to react before a hailstorm of bullets came flying at him, however, they seemed to just torture him, by only going for his arms. Out of the blue, Jack dashed forward and kicked one of them in the stomach, making him lie on the ground gasping for air. The other one he pushed into the lake next to us. Soon after he collapsed on the ground in front of me. He looked like he was bleeding out and I was just sitting there unable to do anything.

I finally bit through the rope that was holding back my scream. I screamed as loud as I could and finally someone came. It was some old guy wearing a captain's hat with a skull on it. He untied me and got us both on his ship and brought in his doctor. Jack's arms had to be amputated.

It took a few months being with the crew trying to repay them for saving Jack. While helping them, I brought back different pieces of junk. I kept tinkering until I had made some amateurish mechanical arms for him. I then went to Jack and tried my best to put him back together. But in the end it didn't work out and he died shortly after the failed operation.


	4. Chapter 4

**13th Jan XX90**

Log book note 19

''It has now been a month since I joined this crew ''The Back-alley pirates'' and finally they have allowed me to go off the ship alone. Ever since they took me in on this ship I've only been trusted with simple chores, since I had come from a highly marine controlled island so trust issues were expected.

At first not a single one of them cared for me nor my friend, who had lost his arms to save me back on the island, but slowly some of them approached me and asked simple questions like ''What's your name kid?'' or ''Could you come help me with something?'' And they actually began thanking me for doing all of those chores that they were too busy to do. They even began sharing better food with me, though I thanked no to any alcohol, but we had laughs and we had fights all fun and games. The captain of the crew called himself ''Rough beard'' and began teaching me fighting skills and I in turn taught him cooking. Once in a while I'd go to my dead friend's body to pray for my safety.

Now a few weeks ago they let me off the ship and we began going around town. I thought that they would pillage everything and kill everyone but no, they just went around town and bought things they needed as if they were any other kind of person. But when marines arrived, they became incredibly vicious and seemed to grow stronger with Rough's commands. I myself felt inspired and leapt into battle with my staff and I got praised for my efforts. At first they used me as a fake hostage, I was sure every time that they were actually going to kill me but they just fled with me under their arms. 

Then the day came when I could be let off the ship alone. I went around town and did a few errands that they had asked me to do, when I saw an odd looking fruit just lying in a sack of apples.

''Excuse me, sir, but what is that in the bag?'' I asked him.

The old man looked at me with tired eyes ''What, are you a blind welp?! They're apples, of course. I'm selling apples for a living that's all I can do around here with all the competition around. Buy one or leave I have a family to feed.''. I took out some change from my pocket that I had been saving up. I actually surprised myself a bit by how much I had actually saved up.

''Here this should be more than enough for the bag and apples right?''

The tired man's eyebrows went so far up that it looked like they were hiding behind his hair. ''You'd give so much to an old man like me instead of going for quality at any other place?''

I smiled and said ''I can't bear to see the elderly suffer.'' I then took the bag and continued my errands.

I chose to sit down near what looked to be a run down marine settlement and began inspecting the weird fruit that was inside. It felt hairy and tough, almost like a coconut, but the outside looked too weird and colorful to be a coconut. I took out a knife and tried to stab it, but it was still holding up quite well. ''I'll wait until I get back and find a hammer. That should be enough.''

My little solo chat got cut short as a group of marines came out of the building and began shouting at me. ''Don't you know what this place is?! It's illegal for anyone to go here!'' A more brute looking man stepped forward. He looked very familiar. I then remembered where I had seen him before. He was the marine that had witnessed me being taken hostage by the pirates.

''Wait… You're that kid from back then… Did you escape?! If so we can easily help you get back home.''

''This isn't good…'' I thought to myself.

A genius idea, then came to mind. I said to them, ''Yes, exactly! They are at the north port right now. I'm sure they are still there. But can one of you stay with me just in case they find me?'' The big marine thought to himself for a second and nodded. ''Alright, you guys go to the north port and capture then I'll stay here and protect the kid.''

However, in reality my crew was anchored in the southern port. As soon as I couldn't hear the other marines I put the fruit back in the bag and pulled out my knife again. I then jumped the big marine and tried to stab in the neck… Nothing happened. No blood, no scream nothing. The man just turned his head with the angriest look that I had ever seen. ''Wha…. What are you?!''

He then grinned and said with the kindest voice he could muster in this state. ''I'm just a marine. With a bit of Logia in me, that's all.'' He then with almost no power at all threw me down to the ground and stood on me with one foot. ''I'm just going to guess that you telling us where they were was just a lie then and take it that you are just a filthy murdering pirate!''

He then lifted his foot about to stomp me in the chest which would easily kill me. I decided on one chance. If I couldn't hurt him, then I'd just have to incapacitate him. I cut off the foot that was still planted on the ground, making the man lose his balance and fall backwards. I then quickly got up and took all my gear and my bag of apples and made a mad dash for the ship. In the distance I could hear the man scream ''Come back here!'' The scream, then became quiet as I got into a mass of people and just pushed my way to the ship.

''Guys! We have to leave now! There's marines here and one isn't killable!'' I yelled to the crew.

I quickly jumped aboard as the others raised the anchor and began slowly moving from port.

I don't know when but at some point someone must've taken a picture of me because the next day the news coo arrived with a newspaper and a bounty had been placed on my head. It wasn't much, but it damn near shocked everyone on the ship out of their good skin. When everyone had calmed down, they all nodded in agreement at something. They all then roaringly congratulated me with my bounty. I was still scared shitless as now I'd have to begin fighting for myself.

During the night I slowly got out of my hammock and walked over the creaky floor of the ship. Luckily for me the other members of the crew were extremely heavy sleepers so I didn't have to sneak out. I went to the kitchen and went into the storage and found my bag of apples hidden behind a few barrels of rum. I pulled out the weird fruit and stuffed it under my coat. I then went to the captain's quarters because he loved staying up almost all night reading his favorite series of books called ''The Adventures of the Vigil Merman''. (I have no idea what he sees in that damn book.)

I knocked on the door and heard a heavy yawn and a strong voice saying ''Come in.'' I slowly opened the door seeing my captain in his weird pajamas. (Blue and white do not fit my taste.) I slowly approached him and pulled out the weird fruit and asked, ''Do you know what this is Cap'n? I found it in the marketplace of the last island.''

His tired eyes took a quick look at the fruit and not even blinking quickly answered, ''That's just a devil fruit.'' Confused at his answer I asked ''Aaaaaand... what is that?'' '' It's a fruit that gives whichever person that eats it incredible powers unknown to most people unless it has been recorded by the marines. You found it so you should try eating.'' My captain never is one for power so I just left the captain's quarters again with more questions than answers.

That's when a fellow pirate of mine jumped down from above. She was quite the annoyance to times, but who isn't. She had quite a good sense of humor but she was loyal and fair. She had long red hair and had emerald green eyes. Quite hypnotizing sometimes. She wore breeches and a shirt that was cut up at the sleeves. She also wore a red and white polka dot bandana.

''What'cha got there, Rai.'' She said with a teasing voice and pointed at the devil fruit I was hiding under my coat.

''It's just a fruit that I scavenged is all.'' I said with shifty eyes.

''Mhm… Sure, that's why you were just in the captain's quarters showing off some flashy looking ball. Come oooooooon just show it to me. I won't steal it.'' As always she was being very curious. ''Fine, here it…'' I had just pulled out the fruit and almost immediately Cera swiped the fruit and was about to bite into it. ''Wait! Stop!''

But it was too late, she had already tried to bite into it. She then screamed out in pain and I put my hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.

''I told you to wait… This thing is as hard as rocks and you can't just break it open just like that.'' I took away my hand and she began rubbing her cheeks in quite a bit of pain ''You should've warned me.'' I looked at her with an annoyed look ''Well I tried to you glutton.''

She then hit me hard in the shoulder ''Hey! You don't call women gluttonous. It's called having a healthy appetite''

I rolled my eyes ''Well will leave me alone then?''

''Not until I taste that mighty tasty looking fruit there.''

I then sighed and responded ''Fine… Let's go to the workshop to try and break it open okay?'' Cera and I then left quickly from the perimeters and went to the workshop avoiding the very tired looking crewmates that had come out to look for what was making all that noise.

When we entered the workshop we were hit by a heavy smell of newly cut wood. I liked it, but Cera couldn't stand it and pulled out the gas mask that she was always wearing. ''I really don't understand how you can stand this smell.'' She said with an annoyed tone. ''Well, whatever, let's go find a hammer or something.''

We went around the room for a bit and found some different tools to open it. Because of it having the toughness of a coconut I expected it to have some kind of liquid inside so I had brought a bottle from the kitchen on our way there. I brought over a hammer and a drill. Cera brought the wood cutter.  
''You really are crazy you know that.'' She smiled sheepishly and said

''And that's why everybody here loves me''

''Well, just put that wood cutter back alright'' I then began slowly drilling into the fruit. It took a little while, but as I expected it had a liquid core so I flipped the coconut upside down with the hole facing the bottle. Slowly but surely the yellow liquid seeped out of the white fruit.

''Well, that's that under way.'' I then poured the liquid into the two glasses that I had also retrieved from the kitchen.

''Cheers'' We both said as I took the first sip because Cera always says that any liquid can be poisonous. I immediately spat it out and began coughing it all out ''What the hell?! This tastes horrible!''

Cera laughed and poured the liquid back into the bottle. ''Well, seems I'm actually lucky that the shell was so hard that I couldn't bite through it."

She turned around and began putting the things she had found back into place when a loud noise of splintering glass filled the room. I had somehow made the glass into a glass ball and dropped it because it was to slippery to hold.

''What did you do?! Now we have to clean the damn floor. Where'd you get a crystal ball from anyways? Did you steal it or something.'' Cera got a twinkle in her eye as she grinned at me

''I don't know what happened… All of a sudden the glass just felt round and slippery and then it fell to the floor. I think we have to go speak with the captain.''

I then ran off hearing Cera call me back to help clean it up. On my way to the captain's quarters I put on my leather gloves to stop me from touching anything. When I arrived, I slammed open the doors and called ''Captain something is happening! I had a glass in my hand and out of nowhere I was suddenly holding a glass sphere. I think this ship might be haunted and we have to leave.''

He looked at me with tired eyes just as he had before ''Calm yourself. I'm going to guess out in the blue and say you ate the devil fruit didn't you?''

I nod

''Well, that means you've lost your ability to swim… But in turn you've gained incredible power. I do not know what it could be but as you said that the glass turned into a sphere, then I believe that your devil fruit is a Paramecia type. There are three types of devil fruit classes in this world. Logia that changes one's body into that of an elemental'' I then thought back to the marine from the island and now it made much more sense. ''Then there is Zoan which is one that allows the user to become a beastly monster like your ol' captain here…'' He then pulled down his sleeve and his body turned slippery and hard. ''And lastly, there is the one that I think yours is classified as. Paramecia one which is the most random one. I want you to try and show it to me.''

He then throws a stick at me. I fumble to catch it, but keep it from falling.

''Now take off your gloves and focus on it.''

I did as he asked and held my hands on the stick. Nothing seemed to happen and it annoyed me quite a bit. Then I felt the stick beginning to bend inwards and when it stopped it had turned into a star shaped wooden object.

'' Hmm, very interesting. First, you make a glass into a sphere and now you make a wooden pole into a star. It seems quite obvious, but that this fruit is making you able to shape things to your will. Quite useful, but until you get it under control you will have to wear your gloves alright kid?''

I nod in response

''Good, then we'll train when we reach the next island alright? Now then, off to sleep you go and so shall I''

He then pushed me outside the door and shut it. Behind the door stood Cera with a very grumpy look on your face.

''So it was a devil fruit… I knew it. I should've drank that glass of juice first. Well, whatever. Now I have to save your sorry ass whenever you fall into the sea…'' She ended her sentence with an annoyed snort.

''Hey hey, no need to mope about it. I'm sure you'll also find one sometime. Maybe not right now, but sometime alright so cheer up.''

She looked at me and smiled. She then gave me a big bear hug ''Thank you Rainon you always know what to say in these situations''

''Oh god damn it, I made another pencil into a wooden ring!''

 **8th April X100**

Last Log book note

Well, it definitely has been quite a ride. I've been with this crew for 6 years now and it has been amazing. I've racked in both quite a big bounty and a ton of money. I think it is finally time for me to leave this crew. Captain and Cera already know and to no surprise at all the captain doesn't want to let me go neither does Cera.

After I told Cera about it, she said ''You better be joking! Why do you have to leave?! Now of all times. I had planned so much for us.''

''Us?'' I was completely shocked. In all of the years I've been on this ship, she had never said anything that could even be considered this kind of stuff ''I want to be with you forever. But it has to be on this crew. And you're not leaving and that's final.''

I got a bit flustered, but kept my composure ''Cera if you want to stay with me you can just come with me. I'm sure captain won't mind.''

Cera then turned quite a bit more red ''But this is my family! Yours too! How can you just abandon us…'' She then began crying

''Cera listen. I'm sure I've told you my story just as you've told yours. You of all people should know that I have a brother out there somewhere and that I promised my mother to find him.'' 

Cera looked me in the eyes with tears rolling down my cheek. ''Then promise when you find him that you'll return to me. Not as a friend, but as a husband. Pinky promise.''

She then put out her hand and put out her pinky finger. I had always suspected that she had grown more attached and more friendly but this baffled me. I never thought she'd return the feelings I had for her.

''I promise.'' I said as I grabbed her finger with mine.

She then gave me a small piece of paper and said ''This will lead your way back to us''

That also reminds me. After having trained for a while with the captain I got so good with my devil fruit that I now don't need my leather gloves on so I've cut the finger parts of the gloves off so that my palm is still inside but my fingers are completely free. It's actually quite fun to use this power. Pranks are quite simple too. Well, now I leave this log book here to be found by whichever person that might stumble upon it. But for now I bid all of you guys goodbye

''Hehehehe… That boy never seizes to amaze me…'' Said Rough as he read the last page of my log book. ''Maybe I should show Cera this. It's actually very good reading material.'' He then closed the book and left it on his table and went out on the deck.


	5. Chapter 5

**15 Sep X100**

Finally, I had reached a quiet island. It was pretty out of the ordinary as it was a village built at the bottom of a mountain. The whole island was actually one big mountain and at the top of it there was a marine base. It was smaller and mostly insignificant, so I thought there wouldn't be too much to deal with here. The houses on the island were made of clay and rock built into the mountain itself. All the way up through the city ran a long staircase where people would flock up and down and from passage to passage. The people seemed to work as a machine as none of the people seemed to interact with each other just slipping past each other in a stream of people.

It was surprisingly easy to get through the large quantity of people and being noticed was that of a myth. I had to be careful not to fall as it seemed that it would be the end of me.

While walking I spotted a white cape of what seemed to be a marine captain. He had green shades and brown, orange-ish hair. He wore all white except his suit underneath which was blue while the tie he wore was red. The cape was attached to the suit at the shoulders and waved in the wind as he walked down the stair.

Keeping my cool, I lowered my head a bit, but it seems that was a fatal mistake as immediately after I heard him calling ''Hey you there! In the suit!''

I had no other options than to run. I pushed my way through the stream of people until I reached and alleyway with no people around. However the marine was hot on my tail, as I kept running I could hear him calling me to stop and then something I had never imagined before.

A big white wall appeared in front of me blocking my way. It was not made out of brick or metal. It was made of bones. This got me very panicked as that made me think that this town was haunted and that was the reason for it being so mechanical like. I took my staff and reformed it into a big hammer and smashed my way through.

As I kept running I spotted a big empty house, which I decided to hide out in. When I came in I noticed just how big it was. It was the size of a whole fleet ship. It was completely empty and the slightest sound rang out like a loud echo. I slowly walked into the center completely dumbfounded. That's when I heard footsteps behind me.

(Oh no!) I thought to myself. I had forgotten all about the marine that was after.

He seemed to be out of breath, yet he still spoke ''Finally… *Huff* you stop. I just wanted to see your face is all. I feel like I've seen it before. Perhaps fifteen years ago.'' He looked at me with a tired smile.

I stared at him with fear and rage in my eyes. So early in my adventure and I had already been stopped by a marine. Was this the end? I bit my lip as I realized what I had just thought to myself.

''How would you know me back then?! I've never seen you in my entire life!'' I shouted at him.

His eyes filled with disbelief as if he had just seen his whole family die. ''Come on bud. You do remember me, right? I've always been there for you and Momue.'' (Who is he and who is Momue?)

I just stared at him for a while and then said calmly ''I don't know you and I definitely don't know anyone named Momue.''

He chuckled ''So she never gave you her name is it? She was never home much so I wouldn't be surprised. But then what if I say that I know a certain guy whose name is very similar to yours. His name is Shay Cooper''

That's when I snapped. I flew into a rage and began swinging my hammer at him. He easily dodged my every attack as if I was moving in slow-motion. '

'You bastard! What have you done with my brother?!''

He just chuckled again and whispered ''I've done nothing to him. You're the one trying to kill him right now."

I stopped dead in my tracks. What did he just say? I'm trying to kill him? Was this some kind of trick to make me put down my guard? I spoke with a shriveled voice ''What do you mean?''

Everything was spinning and I felt extremely dizzy. Poison? No couldn't be he hadn't attacked me once. A devil fruit? No, not that either.

His face became a bit harsh ''I always thought you were the fastest thinker between us… It's me. Your big bro.''

That's when the whole world stopped. There was no sound, no color. Nothing. Just me and him. As if time itself had been stopped moving.

''That is not possible! Shay is gone! Even if he is still alive he wouldn't be a dirty marine!'' I screamed at the top of my lungs.

He slowly approached me and spoke softly ''He is quite happy to see you. Being a marine hasn't been his cup of tea anyways. But, what I have done has always been to protect you. It was either become a marine and a test subject or watch my whole family get tortured in front of me. You would've done the same. Now then, let me ask you this. How is mother? Is she alright. Last I saw her she was suffering a lot.''

I sensed that he expected the truth and I felt that he probably knew too but I still told him. ''I couldn't save her. The disease was too much and she probably died a few hours after she sent me away. I myself have been looking everywhere for my brother and I can't believe I've found him now of all times.'' Tears slowly ran down my face as he gave me a big hug.

''Well, now bro, I'll never leave your side again. I'll protect you until the day I die'' He said.

After standing there a while we went down to the port to find my ship. I told him about my adventures and he was quite surprised by the stories. I also told him how this crew needed more members.

I had three people in mind and those people would definitely join them. The first would be The Berry Bird which was a creature that our mother used to tell fantastical stories about. It looked like a normal north bird, but instead of its usual colors it was pink with a belly of different colored edible feathers, which depending on the color of the berries would taste like different desserts. Luckily for me, mother had given me an amulet which I wore around my neck, which worked like a kind of compass showing us the way to the next island. Then the adventure to find the rest of the crew began. The Berry Bird, Cera and our father Neos.


	6. Chapter 6

**09 Oct X100**

After a long time at sea we finally got to the next island. Jurra Island. It was a tropical island one with fruits that could be described as otherworldly and animals that most scientists would call fossils. It was a beautiful place. There was no civilization as the island was in actuality a giant sea turtle, which just drifted around the ocean. It had a natural predator repellent so it was off no danger anywhere in the sea.

There was even told stories of it being spotted in the Calm Belt. We slowly approached it cautiously as to not scare it away the turtle. It seemed to pay us no mind as it just kept drifting along, so we put down our anchor and tightly bound some ropes from the boat to some trees. As we walked through the island we were harassed by bugs and other such things. There were also bigger animals. All reptilian or insectoid.

It was as if we had just gone a million years into the past and stepped into the age of the dinosaurs. Luckily there were no volcanoes as the island was made of flesh and blood though the island floor was slippery due to the shell of the turtle. We kept walking for a while longer when Shay suddenly stopped and looked around. ''What is it? Another big animal?'' I asked.

He narrowed his eyes and said ''No. Smaller. But definitely more dangerous.'' The trees around them began rustling and after a little bit of time passed a monkey like being jumped at us. It's nails were old, long and sharp so getting to close would be dangerous.

''I'll take care of him Shay!'' I said as I pulled my staff out in front of me, took out the iron ore and a thunder dial from my pocket. With this I formed an iron mallet and embedded the Dial into it so that it would release electrical currents when it came into contact with anything. ''Come at me you damn monkey!'' Sadly I would be at a disadvantage as it began to turn dark and it got harder to see anything.

Then out of the blue the monkey leapt at me. I tried to dodge to the left but my foot got stuck on a root and I fell. As I fell I felt a swift cut from the monkey scratching my cheek. I deftly swung my axe hitting the monkey in the stomach sending him flying and slamming him head first into a big tree.

I dashed towards him but then out of the blue the monkey spoke ''Oh damn. I went crazy again. How long have I been…'' He stared at his hands and saw the long nails. ''Thank god just a month or two'' He then got up and saw two dumbfounded younger men one with black and one in white. One of the was standing with a big hammer a few feet away from him.

''Who are you and what are you doing on this island?! Get off now or i shall cut your throats! The treasure on this island is sacred and will not be moved or touched by filthy outsider hands! I've sworn my life to protecting this island and it's creatures! I…'' Before he could say any more I had already swung my hammer at him again hitting him not as hard as before, but still enough to knock him down.

With an annoyed tone in my voice I said ''Listen here numbskull. We're not here for treasure, we're not here to harm animals. All we want is to recruit The Berry Bird. Got it?'' The monkey man laughed and said ''As if anyone can recruit it. You probably don't even know how to impress it do you. Well nevermind. I'll show you the way to its shrine. Also my name is Clow, I am the guardian of the gurtle (Giant turtle)''

As the shrine comes into view it is pretty easy to see that it has worn down quite immensely. Moss is growing all over. The clear bricks have turned yellowish with a few cracks here and there. The stairs though have been kept in quite a nice condition. When we reach the top I notice how there is not a spot of moss. In the center of the shrine there is something that would look to be a big platter. The center is surrounded by 5 big columns as there seems to be one missing.

Shay and I place down our bags and begin pulling out different things. Vegetables, meat etc. Clow looks at us with quite a shocked look "So you do know how to perform the ritual? Well then I'll call the Berry bird" Clow pulls out a small flute which has the shape of a bird's long beak. He then proceeds to blow into it… Nothing. No sound of flapping wings, no high pitched tune just the sound of the wind brushing past us.

Then we began hearing something that would sound like a storm approaching. We look around and see a giant bird. Its flapping wings almost knocked us off the shrine. As it approached its landing destination, which was a small perch, it slowly shrunk down and landed. It was now the average height of any other parrot. It was a bright pink colour with a bit of green at the tip of the feathers. On it's belly there were what I expected. Small berries shining a lighter yellow.

Clow hands me a note "Here are notes for what the different colours mean. The shine right now is curiosity and optimism. It is very interested in what you're going to serve it." I begin setting up the different things. A little fire to roast the fish dish on. A few boards to chop the different things on. A pan, a grill, a bowl etc. "Alright then. All set" I start with my normal routine for my full course. I took out honey, some oranges, a red cabbage and finally a bag of pumpkin seeds. I then peeled and took a part the oranges, chopped the cabbage and mixed it all together with the seeds and honey. I placed the salad on the big platter. I then began with my Hors d'oeuvre which was an Eggs benedict, my soup was sea dragon tears, my Fish dish was a marinated and oven cooked Fighting fish, my meat dish was a roasted dragon heart, the main was my special spaghetti and meatsauce, my drink was Bink's sake and finally my Dessert an ordinary creme brulee though it wasn't what I wanted to put on my main course.

That would be a creme brulee made with the berries on the bird in front of me's stomach. When I place down the final part the bird flew over and began eating away. In a matter of few minutes all was gone. Except luckily what they were served in. The bird did not fly back to the perch however. It flew right over to me and landed on my shoulder.

It's belly had begun shining a mixture of red and pink. I looked on the colour note which told me that the colour that it was showing was trust. I picked a berry and ate it. It tasted like the sweetest mixture of berries. It was incredible just as I had expected. We then packed our things and began our long walk back to the ship. When we looked back towards the perch Clow was gone. I just ignored it and went away.

When we were about to set sail though, the ship's rope that we had bound to a tree didn't want to come loose. We took walked around the ship to see if we could find a knife, but nothing could cut the rope. The ship then began shaking as the gurtle began swimming and we took a look overboard. We were scared out of our wits as to what was in the water. Tons and tons of sea kings were swimming around beneath us.

It then hit us where we were. We had been dragged out into the calm belt. We had no idea what to do when out of nowhere the wind began picking up again and we could see a red mountain in the distance. The rope then broke on it's own accord and we were let go. The gurtle had taken us out of the calm belt again and back on track to the Grandline. We had finally reached our first waypoint.


	7. Chapter 7

**31 Dec X100**

We had been sailing for months on end with no islands in sight. The sea was also so cold that we had to wear big fur coats to not get frozen by the weather. Polly was inside the cabin as he would die in this cold. But we continued anyways. The Vivre Card that Cera had given me lead this way so that's where I was heading. It suddenly began clearing up and the fur coats began getting hot and sweaty so we quickly threw them off.

Suddenly there was a flower right in front of me. It looked like it was floating mid air and got closer and closer to my eyes. Then I realised that it was actually a gigantic flower on top off a grass island. The flower was one I had never seen before. The island beneath was covered in its big shadow and it was almost completely barren of with only grass growing there. No animal life could be spotted there.

There were roots growing all over the island reaching into the sea. Somehow the flower must've evolved to be able to gain nutrients from salt water instead of fresh water. The stem of the flower seemed to form like a spring growing upwards. All the way to the top grew small leaves. At the bottom of the stem there seemed to be a giant caterpillar. As we got off the ship and began climbing the massive vines we could see that the on top off the giant caterpillar was what looked to be a generic Carriage driver.

He had an unkempt beard and a rough looking coat. He rubbed his eyes and asked "Need a ride up to the top?" I looked down at the Vivre card which was jumping upwards towards the top. Cera must be on this island I thought to myself. I looked up at him and answered "Yes we'd love to. How much for the trip? Also what's the name of this island?" He chuckled and said "This here island is known as Kagool Island. One shouldn't step on here if one is a pirate. (Or a woman). But nevermind that hop in hop in."

Hop in? I thought to myself. What does he mean. Even before I finished my thought the giant caterpillar opened its mouth and the circles on the sides of it turned pale and see through like glass. "This here caterpillar has eaten the Basu Basu no mi. He is a bus caterpillar. Quite crafty. He is one nice caterpillar too" He said as he patted it on the side.

As we head inside we notice that the inside looks like any other vehicle. Except everything is made out of caterpillar hair. I never in my life expected it to be so comfy. Shay and I sat in opposite seats face to face. The carriage was so soft that I actually fell asleep. When I awoke we were just getting past two petal to reach the top.

What came next almost blew me out of my seat. It was a village… No a whole city made out of pure paper. The colour so vibrant it wasn't just white. The paper made people also had many kinds of shapes and sizes. There were children running around playing fetch with a dog. It was unbelieveable. I quickly woke up Shay and we began walking through the town.

I made sure as to keep the Vivre Card hidden as to not cause a ruckus, which it surely would. We thanked the carriage driver and he just fell asleep and waited for our return. It was so weird, like a whole other world. Never in my life had imagined such wonder. Though I must say the food and weapons weren't really the best for outsiders.

We kept heading straight through the city towards a big castle. When we approached the door the paper guards quickly opened up for us. Inside seemed to be something that was out of place. It was probably how empty and dark it looked. Slowly our eyes got used to it and we took a look around. There seemed to be cages hanging from the ceiling.

The Vivre Card pointed us further and further along. When we had almost reached the end it once again began jumping. We looked up and there seemed to be a spire from the castle going upwards. There was another cage hanging there. And out of that cage hang dirty boots.

I took out a part of my staff and reformed it into a pistol and placed a thunder dial inside. I then took aim and fired at the cage. A blinding light appeared and the noise of electricity filled the air though I had only tapped the trigger so the jolt shouldn't have done any harm.

The boots got back into the cage and a familiar voice roared out "Hey what the hell are you doing?! First paper cuts and now electrocution?! For the last time I will not marry you just to avoid getting sent to the marines. I made a vow and I'm sticking to it!" Both of us began laughing at Cera's outburst.

Cera noticed the laughter and looked down from within the cage. "Cooper? Is that you?! Oh it feels like an eternity since we last met. Did you already find your brother?" She looked over at Shay "You definitely don't have the same taste. Anyways, why'd you have to go and shock me like that?!" The cage began swinging back and forth and the center of the room began changing. It seemed like it was molding people.

One took colour and had more defining features. The others looked like very big breasted paper woman in skimpy clothing. "You must be the new guys right? Good to see you've already met my future wife. Well she needs a little um what would you say… manners. Well while you take care of that I'll just be on my way with my girls here."

As he began moving towards the door on the right side of the room I dashed forward and punched him square in the face. He must've been new to his devil fruit because he should've just turned into a bit of bent paper, but instead I could feel his nose breaking due to the punch. "Hey. Wowowowooooooow, What are you doing man? You shouldn't go around hitting people like that!"

He then put his nose back in place and made the paper women next to him turn into a storm of paper planes. I took out the thunder dial in my chamber and changed it out with a blaze dial and fired away at the airplanes. The surrounding castle then also began bursting into flames "What the hell are you doing?! MY CASTLE! MY HAREM!" He then transformed his arms into sharp needles of paper and began stabbing at me.

I tried my best to dodge him but it seemed like the more I dodged the faster he got. Shay who had been trying to cut open the paper cage that Cera was in noticed how much trouble I was in and created spiky bones in front of the man. However he just ran right past him and stabbed me in the gut. It went all the way through to the other side piercing through my body.

"Now listen here boy. You don't what you're messing with. I am Pasak Ara a Shichibukai. You know what that means? I work for the world government and they won't just patiently sit by while you destroy my kingdom. They will come here and I'll make sure you get a nice spot in Impel down. And you up there! You are coming too!"

The castle then transformed into tons of needles and they were immediately launched at Shay. He kept his cool and just surrounded himself in a sphere of bones blocking the attack. As Pasak was distracted with Shay I put back my pistol and took the whole thing out and reformed it into a big axe. "You know what Kairoseki is right? Well this here ore I got from a friend of mine and it is, just like kairoseki, able to cut Logia users."

I then swiftly swung the big double sided axe at Pasak quickly cutting him down from the shoulder and across his stomach. The part of the castle that was behind him got ripped through as if a giant knife had just cut through it. The air slash of the axe kept going destroying almost the whole town and disappeared before it hit the carriage driver and his caterpillar.

Pasak wasn't dead but definitely knocked out cold. We quickly ran out of the castle and headed through the ruined city. Every single one of the townspeople tried to knock us down, by throwing things like paper cabbages or watermelon. When we got close enough to the caterpillar we all called out "We need to get down to the surface quickly!"

He yawned and rubbed his eyes "Already? Well the customer decides. Hop in we're leaving immediately" The giant caterpillar quickly scared off the paper inhabitants making them return to the town. We then began descending and this time I was able to see the beautiful view, though it did give me a draining feeling as I had never been good with heights especially when the caterpillar coiled around the stem so that it was turned upside down.

Luckily for us the hairs inside tied around us like seatbelts so we were in no danger of falling. When we stepped on to the ship and walked through the door to the kitchen Polly instantaneously flew over to me and landed on my shoulder which shocked Cera so much that she punched at the bird which flew off my shoulder again which lead to Cera hitting me instead. "You really need to work on your strength Cera. I almost didn't even feel that."


	8. Chapter 8

**5th Feb X101**

Our crew was coming together quite quickly. I had never expected such a fast pace of events. I had already found my brother, acquired the trust of the Berry Bird and gotten back to Cera in less than a year. It was as if something was leading me to the right places. I woke up inside my cabin due to our ship shaking wildly.

When I got outside to look at the island that we had reached the other night I noticed that we were somehow drifting away. "What is this? Shay come up here quick!" After a little while he sluggishly came out of the cabin behind me "What is all the ruckus?" He said while rubbing his tired eyes. "Doesn't something look wrong to you?" I held my hand out in a flat position towards the island.

"Yeah, that's the island we are at right? Why is it so tiny?" This just got me more annoyed as Shay was obviously oblivious to his own mistake of forgetting to put down the anchor. "Wait… Why are we floating away? I'm sure I put down the anchor." Shay then went to look of the railing and sure enough the anchor was firmly planted beneath us. "How is this possible?!"

We then heard a high pitched whistle followed by an explosion of colour above the island. We prepared ourselves and began sailing back to the island. When we arrived there were people waiting for us with ropes. "Sorry about yesterday fellas. We didn't realise someone had come to visit. You need to ring this bell over here to make us come out. The bottom of the ocean here is too slippery to put an anchor down on so you'll just slip away until it hits firm ground."

They then threw ropes over to our ship which we tightly bound around the railing. We leapt down towards the beach and landed with a squish "Be quick when you land on the beach. The sand above water is so soft that you'll quickly be swallowed up if you don't keep moving. That's why this island is known as Gurēto-numa. The beaches are more like a swamp you could say"

We quickly dashed over to the stone stairs heading to the village before anything major happened. I then used my powers to make a bridge that headed all the way over to our ship so that if Cera was to wake up she wouldn't accidentally go down to the sand and get swallowed whole.

We then followed the larger man, who was incredibly well built for an elderly person. "You're quite lucky. A circus actually just arrived not too long ago. They are setting up near the center of the island right now. I'm sure you've heard of them. They are quite famous right now. They call themselves the historic catastrophe circus. Sounds boring, but surprisingly a lot of children really enjoy it. Something about the main member looking like some kind of superhero or something. His name is Raankh or some other kind of shenanigans. The biggest event is… Nevermind it's better to see and try it rather than get it spoiled for ya."

Shay and I looked at each other, our eyes filled with excitement. We nodded in agreement, that we were going to see this hero of theirs. We left, while it was still dark out to make it more interesting. The first step away from the village felt like we had just waltzed straight into a big hole as we slightly fell down, but almost instantaneously we got put back into place.

"This place is really obnoxious. How could anyone live with such an environment. It's like one big bouncy castle and nothing will change even if I use my power." Shay stood still and thought for a bit. He then snapped his fingers with a proud look on his face. He placed hands on his shoes and bones began to emerge from his palms. They surrounded his feet and made a little platform. He then proceeded to do the same to mine.

"This should keep us from bouncing as much." As we kept walking, the jungle slowly began to become less condensed, giving way to a rainbow of colours and loud music that could be heard miles away. Walking up we could see elephants, clowns and a lot of historical figures. The old Celestial Dragons, the founders and surprisingly some looked like our people, wings and everything.

We looked around to see if we could find a ticket booth, but no matter how hard we looked we couldn't find any. A little bit away we saw a tiny little man with blonde curls and a red outfit, with a ridiculously big top hat. I poked him on the shoulder and asked politely "Excuse me, but where is the place to pay the entrance fee?"

He looked at us and laughed a hearty laugh. "There is none! The whole thing is free. Including free entry you can also get a free drink and snack per person. Here, take this, it's a stamp to prove that you haven't taken more than you're allowed. When you get one of them the person behind the counter will stamp on whichever you choose. This one."

He points at the bucket of popcorn. "Is the stamp for snacks, and then this." He then points at the cup with bubbles falling out of it. "Is for drinks. Now go and enjoy yourself." I just thanked, but Shay had something else on his mind. "How would you know all this?" He laughed again, little less than before, but still just as heartedly. "I'm the ringleader, my friends. I am Circ. Quite a fitting name for the person owning a circus wouldn't you agree?"

He laughed strongly as he walked into the tent, probably to make sure everything was in order. Shay and I got our snacks and drinks and found ourselves a good spot inside the tent where we could see the whole performance. As the sun began to rise behind us, the joyful music began playing. It filled the whole tent with cheer and smiles. But outside without anyone's knowledge, a pair of people dressed in all black were carrying someone.

The biggest opened his mouth and a foul smell could be sensed as he spoke "Tell me again bro, what we need this guy for?" The smallest of the bunch stared at him with death in his eyes as if he had been asked that question a thousand times. He hadn't counted, but he was sure it was pretty high

"Alright, I'll tell you once more. But this is the last time got it! Alright this guy is Duerme. He has eaten a devil fruit that makes whoever he touches fall into a deep deep sleep for a very long time, if nothing is done about it. We are gonna use him to kidnap as many of the female staff of this stupid thing as we can. Then we take them to Ichiba island and sell them as slaves for tons of Beri! We're gonna be rich! It's still unbelievable that we found this guy just lying around. And he's supposed to be a fearsome Shichibukai? Tch, never thought they'd sink so low as to hire a wimp like him." A soft snoring could be heard from the limp person above them.

Back in the circus, the main act had just begun. Gas began covering the floor, all light pointed at the arena entrance and in came, what could only be described as an ancient pharaoh. His clothes covered his whole body in orange and blue horizontal stripes, his mask covered by a mask, which only had a pair of eyes with no other features. Behind him was an orange cape that reached all the way to his ankles covered halfway in his long black hair.

He stepped forward into the middle of the arena, and soon after Circ introduced him "Hear ye, hear ye, the man standing strong and proud in front of you is none other than the ancient pharaoh Raankh. He has been blessed with the powers of eternal youth and immortality. Come all as many as want down to try your best at harming him. Any wound will heal as soon as the weapon leaves the wound." The arena was soon filled with almost a quarter of the audience willing to try their best at felling the man.

Daggers, rocks, butcher knives and many more. "Hey Shay, I think I want to go down and test him myself. I have a feeling that what we're seeing here is nothing out of the unusual." I then stepped behind the crowd that slowly dispersed. More and more disappointed people went back to their seats, watching as every other attempt was just as good as their own.

As I got closer to the man I took a small bit of my staff and mixed it with some of the metal from my staff. I swiftly morphed it into something more useful. In my hand I now had a dagger capable of cutting any person with it's sharp blade.

I waited for everyone to return to their seats before I stepped forward. "Now no moving alright, bud?" He looked at me and I could feel his hard gaze on me. Not another word was uttered, however he nodded as an answer. I took aim, held the knife ready and threw.

It landed blade first in his left arm. I then went over and pulled it back out, placing the iron and bit of staff back together with the rest. I could hear the shock and awe from the whole audience, whom were now staring at the wound. Nothing. The wound stayed open and the blood was slowly seeping out. Raankh took of his mask, and his face was cladded in surprise and disbelief.

"How is this possible I… I have never been wounded before. This is… How?" I looked at him with a satisfied look. "Just as I had expected. You are just like me. Your powers stem from a fruit that you must have eaten as a kid or something in that manner. You are a devil fruit user, and that is the reason for me being able to harm you."

Before anyone could say anymore, a woman in a feather outfit came running in, obviously in a panic. "The dancers! They're all gone. First they were there, now they are not. I have no idea where they might have gone, but we need to find." Raankh followed her out the tent and I went along. Before I left, I turned towards Shay and gave him a signal to stay put.

Outside it had started to rain heavily and the ground was even swampier than normal. With quick steps we went over to a cabin, which I could only was where the girls were supposed to be. Looking around there seemed to be no sign of any sort of trail. Raankh grabbed me and stared me straight in the eye and with a shaking voice he said

"You. You have to help. You must be almighty if you could be capable of harming. You must help us. Everyone in this circus count as family. We must find them." Inside the jungle a loud shout could then be heard "You idiot! That's my foot you're stepping on!" We quickly ran in the direction that the voices came from. There we found two people each with big bags behind them.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?!" The smaller one looked behind him and with fear on his face said "We were just looking for the circus. This jungle is horribly confusing so we got lost." The big one stared in confusion at his boss and said "But boss aren't we supposed to get out of the forest and go to the traders with these guys?"

The small one quickly leapt up and slapped the bigger on in the back of the head "You idiot! Now look what you've done! Run for it!" They then dashed off into the deeper part of the jungle. We tried to run after them, but the footsteps disappeared quickly in the mud. The crooks had gotten quite far, when out from one of the many trees a thin tall figure.

The men slipped a little while trying to stop. "Out of the way!" The small one shouted. The slender man rubbed his eyes, and sighed "Then you have to the toll. The price is those two bags you have there." "No way! Get him little bro!" The big one then dropped his bag, and charged towards the slender man. The slender man just stood there and shook his head.

As the big one was just in front of him, he tapped him on the forehead and stepped aside. As he did the big crook, fell as long as he was into the mud knocked out cold. "What did you do?! Wait a second, you're… Duerme. But we left you back at the circus. How did you even catch up with us?! You were sound asleep!" As he finished his sentence Duerme had disappeared.

Out of nowhere he felt a tap on his back and everything turned black as he fell to his knees. "It's not really a good idea to underestimate anyone." He then crouched down, took out his knife, and carefully cut open the bags, which made all the girls inside come rolling out of them.

He tapped everyone of them on the forehead and said "Wakey wakey." and slowly the limp girls slowly came to. As he finished, he quickly turned away and went back into the shadows. Around the same time Raankh and I had finally caught up to them. We were incredibly surprised when we saw all the girls walking around in a dazed confusion.

Raankh walked over to the oldest of them and enquired about what happened. She looked up at him and tears in her eyes smiled "We don't know. We were just getting ready to perform leaving for the tent. But when I walked outside to follow the others they were all gone. Then I felt someone place a hand on me and everything went blank. The next thing to happen was that we woke up here and you came running. We saw someone in the distance and we think he might have saved us."

The others nodded in agreement. Raankh sighed "You're alright and that's all that matters. Let's get back to the tent and tell everyone that the show is over." But one of the girls told him that they were actually quite well rested and able to perform. As we came back and re-entered the circus we quickly noticed that there were far fewer people in the tent. The final act went even better than any of them had even expected.

After the show had ended, everyone turned to leave. As Shay and I were about to leave I felt a heavy hand grab my shoulder and turn me around, to face Raankh who was now not wearing a mask anymore. "Please I have to do something as payment for not only help saving our actors, but you were also able to prove that I can actually die. I need to repay some way."

Rainon grinned. He just got a good idea. "Well… you can repay me by becoming my servant. On my pirate crew." He was only being half serious, he wasn't expecting much. But out of the blue, he felt a heavy sensation, like being crushed between two pillars. Raankh had given him a big bear hug.

"I have never heard simpler terms, I shall serve you with loyalty, until the that you perish and I live on" As they had come to terms with the fact that another member was joining their crew, Rainon, Shay and Raankh went back to the ship. After giving their farewells they set off to sea.

A little while had passed when Cera came out from her room, stretching her arms and back. "So when are we getting into port?" She quickly noticed that we were sailing away from the island, and her face quickly turned sour "Don't tell me you went exploring without me. Well if you want to go on adventures without me, then I guess you don't need me to find the way to the next island!"

She then stormed back into her room taking the log pose with her, and locked the door. "That must be my master's spouse. Shall I break down the door and teach her proper etiquette?" Shay and I gave each other a quick look before I turned to answer Raankh "I don't think that'll be necessary. Let's just get going before she breaks the helm, and forces us to go back."


	9. Chapter 9

**10th Feb X101**

During the early hours, where I usually did routine maintenance, I found an old notebook in my inner pocket. I scrolled through it a bit, I quickly realized that it was my old drawing book, where I kept all my ship ideas. There was a jet propelled ship that could easily fly over the Redline, another was a sub that was weirdly shaped like a cat and even more fantastical drawings. The second weirder than the first.

I put it in my pocket for later nostalgia and began doing my tour. After awakening the others and leaving food on a barrel outside Cera's room, I took out a chair from the kitchen and reopened my notebook. After a while I came upon one that wasn't just a drawing. It was one I had seen before. I couldn't quite place where though. Shay noticed me looking intensely at the small picture book.

"Childhood fantasies?" Scared and also a bit embarrassed I looked to face my brother. "Yeah. Some of them are really unbelieveable. But there is one I'm a bit stuck with." I showed him the ship I had been looking at. It was a big ship, nothing much was peculiar about except the front. At the front of the ship, instead of a mermaid or something like that, there was a big red lionhead, looking as if it was roaring at something.

"I just can't place where I've seen it before. It feels so obvious, so close." Shay shook his head, and placed it in his right hand "Rainon… That's our ship. Your younger self drew our ship." First I was a bit confused, but then it hit me like a cannonball. I had completely forgotten that it was our ship. I laughed and just shrugged it off "Hey Shay, did I ever tell you guys how I got this ship?" He shook his head.

I was about to begin when, the dark cloud that was Cera, came out of her room again, walked right to the helm and changed the direction. "You guys really can't find your way without me. If ever you're asleep when we reach an island, I'm going exploring alone." Shay and I both chuckled at her, since she was very well known on the ship for being the heavy sleeper and slowest to getting up in the morning.

"Cera, do you remember when we first saw this ship?" At first she looked a bit puzzled, but then she widened her eyes at the realisation "Oh yeah, this is the same ship from back then isn't it?!" Shay looked at me with slight annoyance and said "Could you possibly let me in on the story, instead of leaving me in the dark?" I put a hand up to "defend myself". "Alright, alright, no hurry.

Let's see I believe it was back in

 **2nd May XX96**

It was about 2 years after I had gotten my devil fruit. Me and Cera were just roaming around town, looking for something to do. There were many shops around us, but most of them sold fish and me not being the biggest fan of fish had no interest, and neither did Cera. We were joking about how we should leave behind the Back-Alley pirates, steal all their treasure and buy a boat to sail away.

The boats on the docks were nothing much out of the ordinary, Brown wood boards, A few row boats bound to some bigger ships and many more. After a little while we came upon something that was a bit cooler than the rest. It was big, the wood was a redder and darker shade of purple, while the railing was a bit lighter purple.

It seemed to be able to fit a crew of about 15 people from the looks of it, but could possibly carry more if we could explore it. Even with how spectacular it was, there didn't seem to be anyone patrolling on the ship. Near the ship, sitting on some crates was an old man, and Cera being the social person she is went over to talk to him "Hey old guy! Who in their right mind would leave such a ship unattended?"

He tipped his hat up a bit so he could see us before answering "This ship? It's not owned by anyone. Even if it was only a fool would ride that ship." Cera looked at me and I answered "Well we are such fools. I think it looks beautiful. It's like it has never been used. Why would no one want it?" He laughed a rusty laugh "It's cursed I tell you. Every crew that has left on that ship has been slaughtered by something. Sea kings, octopus, enemy pirates, marines you get the jist. The only thing that would make a person take this ship is either because they don't believe me or because they want the treasure in it's belly. The ship always returns here when the crew is done, bathed in blood. How it returns no one knows, but that is definitely the reason for its colouring. Some people even say that the head of the ship comes alive and eats the crew. Either way, stay away from the ship." The man then closed his eyes and began snoozing again.

Cera took me by the arm and pulled me towards the ship "As if any of that is true. He's just a crazy old guy. He probably wants to keep all that treasure for himself. Come on!" We went inside and began descending the stairs downwards. Conveniently there was a map lying on the deck before the door that led inside.

The stairs seemed to descend for an eternity and we were surrounded by creaking noises, as the ship floated on the waves. We finally reached the bottom and came to face a big iron door. We had to use both of our full strength, to push it open. Inside was a long corridor that turned left halfway. At the end there was another iron door.

There, in front of our eyes were, what we can only describe as, a mountain of treasure. Coins, antique vases, chests and much more. "We have to tell this to everyone else. We could give the ship a whole new look." Cera said excitedly and rushed out. As I tried to keep up with Cera, the creaking of the ship became louder and louder, as if there was a storm going on and we could hear footsteps coming from the other end.

Suddenly the ceiling broke in a long crack along the hall above Cera, sending tons of cargo crashing down upon her. At that moment it felt like time was standing still. If I just stayed put I would be out of danger, but I'd be trapped here. But if I ran forward I would be crushed together with Cera. I thought to myself for a bit and decided that I should attempt to save her.

Even if I failed I'd rather die together with someone rather than trapped and alone. I made a mad dash forward, but there was no chance of getting past all the falling debri. I pushed Cera to the floor and stayed on my hands and knees to try and block the blow from Cera.

Then hell break loose. All around me debri crashed through the ship and the noise it made was deafening. But something was off. There was no pain, nor any sound of water rushing in. It was like the debri kept falling endlessly. As I slowly regained my composure I looked all around me.

There was no light so I had to feel my way around. I couldn't stand up fully, but what I felt really confused me. All the falling debris had landed around us like a globe. As if something had purposefully blocked it and saved us. After a little while I began to hear digging coming from my left and a familiar voice calling out to me. It was the old man from outside. He must've seen us go in and followed us.

"Not another one. Not anymore children. They were just curious and exploring. They don't know any better. I just…" It seemed like he had lost his voice when he got through the shell of cargo. His look of shock was a plain as day "You kids… you're alright! Oh thank lord and mercy. Here give me your hand I'll pull you out." I took a hold of Cera, who was unconscious, and he pulled us both out.

Still shaken with fear I asked why he was so surprised. I closed his eyes a bit, and I couldn't quite see if he was happy or sad. "No one has ever been spared after entering the second half of this corridor. I can't fathom how you're still alive. It's just unimaginable" He took Cera up in his big arms and carried her out of the ship, me following close behind.

When we got out on the dock, the man crouched down and placed his hand on my shoulder and said "Listen. When she wakes up and begins asking you about this, tell her it was all a dream alright? She doesn't need to live with the knowledge of almost getting killed because on old man couldn't save them from a possessed ship."

I nodded, and that's when it hit me. "Wait… if anyone who enters the second half of the hallway have never survived, then how are you here" He smiled and closed his eyes "You are quite a smart kid. I didn't lie. No one have survived. I've been dead for years and have been protecting fools like yourself from this ship for many many days and nights. I'll probably stay until the ship gets destroyed one day." After that he helped carry Cera back to our ship, after which we left the port and as we were leaving, I waved back at the old man.

Now let's see I think it was around

 **4th Jun X100**

I had been forced to use your small row boat for about three months, by the time I got back to the island. The ship was right where we had seen it 4 years ago. And in the same spot he had been sitting before was the same old man. Taking a second look at the ship it seemed even deeper colored than last.

"Hey, sir, I'd like to take this ship on adventures across the sea." The old man didn't as much as flinch, he just pulled up his hat in the same motion as last and shook his head "You really shouldn't, you see that ship there is." Before he continued I cut him off "Cursed. Sir, you've told me this before. Please don't tell me you've already forgotten me"

He lifted his hat just enough so he could see my face "You're… that kid. From a year ago?" I chuckled "Actually it was 4." He chuckled too "Has it really been that long. Well I think she will be completely fine with this. Her name is Bloody Mane and even with her killing intent, she is both tough and beautiful. Take good care of her and good luck."

I walked up the plank of the ship after thanking him. As I was leaving I looked back and he was gone. I had never actually believed him saying that he was dead. But he was just there, and now his cap was in the water. Right in the front there is an almost perfect circular shape. I then looked back to Cera on the helm and Shay next to me

"A ghost ship? You sure you weren't actually dreaming and someone just made this for you?" Shay said in disbelief. "I never believed what you said anyways, Rainon. I had proof that this ship was real." She pulled out a gold coin from her pocket. "I snuck this into my pocket back then to prove it to the crew if they didn't believe us." I laughed softly "You are definitely a born thief."


End file.
